Craniofacial abnormalities account for approximately one third of all congenital birth defects, are a major cause of infant mortality and dramatically impact upon national health care budgets. This proposal requests support for three biannual international meetings on Craniofacial Development and Tissue Regeneration as part of the Gordon Conference Research Series. The significance of this application is that it supports the conference that has become the pre-eminent meeting for the craniofacial community. The broad and long-term goal of these craniofacial GRC meetings is to advance our understanding of the fundamental mechanisms underlying normal craniofacial development, disease and evolution upon which novel avenues for prevention and repair can be developed to manage and treat congenital craniofacial birth defects. The specific aim of this application is to bring together leading investigators to present cutting-edge research on the molecular, cellular and genetic aspects of craniofacial development, evolution, disease and regeneration. More specifically, the Craniofacial GRC meetings will convene approximately 42 speakers representing critical areas of craniofacial development and tissue regeneration. The program will consist of 8 sessions that encompass, neural crest cells and placodes, development of, and interactions between skeletal and connective tissues, signaling pathways mediating cell communication, animal models and genome wide association studies of human disease, advances in regenerative stem cell biology and replacement of craniofacial tissues through tissue engineering. The collegial atmosphere of this Conference together with scheduled opportunities for informal gatherings and poster presentations provides numerous opportunities for interactive discussion, which focuses the field on the many unanswered questions and challenges within craniofacial biology. This proposal addresses a number of the missions and aims of the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research's strategic plan by promoting novel and innovative research avenues for improving critical health issues in craniofacial development as well as preventing congenital craniofacial malformation syndromes. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Head and facial abnormalities account for approximately one third of all birth defects in new born babies, are a major cause of infant mortality and dramatically impact upon national health care budgets. Comprehensive and well-coordinated treatments can provide satisfactory management of each head and facial birth defect. However, the results are rarely fully corrective. Hence considerable effort needs to be invested into developing therapeutic avenues of prevention and also developing better regenerative strategies for craniofacial tissue repair.